Etc...

May 30, 2006

By Compiled from wire reports by staff

Oh, was I bothering you?

If you're going to Hong Kong anytime soon, don't be surprised if you overhear people repeating - as you travel around the city: "This is not resolved! This is not resolved! This is not resolved!" No, it's not a line from a hit song . It occurs in "Bus Uncle," an Internet video that's so popular it is putting the box offices of blockbuster movies to shame. In fact, it has inspired spoofs, kara-oke performances, a parallel version with Chinese subtitles, and even a rap. "Bus Uncle" involves a confrontation between two commuters: a stressed-out rider using a cellphone and a younger fellow who taps him on the shoulder and asks that he keep his voice down. The reaction: a tirade. "I don't know you. You don't know me," the phone user splutters indignantly. "Why do you do this? Why did you provoke me?" At that point, he wins an apology, his anger appears to cool, and they shake hands. But then the younger guy brings up the other's use of profanity, which only triggers another outburst . Although the six-minute video is grainy - perhaps because a fellow passenger recorded it on his cellphone - Hong Kongers can't seem to get enough of it. As of last weekend, it had been viewed almost 2 million times.

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